Replacement hiring is so 2013 – this year financial services firms will be positioning themselves for growth. Adding to the newfound sense of optimism for financial services recruitment in 2014, is the new salary survey by recruiters Robert Walters, which points to an increase in competition among banks and finance firms for talent in back and middle office functions, and a need on the part of employers to be more flexible with whom they take on.

Interestingly, the survey suggests salaries for these roles in the City have largely remained static, despite the ongoing demand for risk and compliance staff. The same applies to the supposedly hot area of project and change management.

Only compliance positions in the control room, trade surveillance or regulatory affairs roles have received any sort of salary uplift in the last 12 months.

Instead, the beneficiaries of pay rises (albeit of around £5k) have been those working in senior product control roles within investment banks. Senior product controllers can now expect between £80-120k, says Robert Walters, up from £80-115k in 2013. Hiring managers are looking for people who can “understand how wider issues affect bank revenue and risk”, which has spurred demand for management reporting and product control professionals.

In the world of ‘star’ technologists who lead technology projects that will give investment banks a competitive advantage, it’s also the senior IT professionals who have enjoyed a jump in their salaries. CTOs have seen their salaries swell by up to £20k, while heads of departments and senior programme and project managers, business analysts and developers have all had pay rises.

Below is a selection of salaries for operational, risk, technology, compliance and accounting positions in the UK, courtesy of Robert Walters. The full salary survey will be available on its website shortly.